Scrapbooking Using Microsoft Word

by Beth Opel

As a scrapbooker, you’ve probably used Microsoft Word to type up your journaling. Maybe you’ve even been brave and created a title with WordArt. But did you know that you can resize photos, type on pictures, organize elements on a page . . . literally design your entire layout in Word? You don’t need any fancy software to begin—it’s all there at your fingertips! Read on to see how easy it really is!

Note: All instructions in this article apply to Microsoft Word 1997–2003. If you have a later version of Word, check out our February 2009 issue of Creating Keepsakes for alternate guidelines.

Let’s start with the photos.1. Open up a blank document in Word and go to the View tab and look under Toolbars. Make sure the Standard, Formatting, Picture and Drawing toolbars are checked.

2. Find the Insert tab and select Picture, then select From File. Find the picture you want (on your computer, on a flash drive, on a photo CD), click on it, and select OK. There it is!

3. Now, click on the photo. In the bar at the top of the screen, find the Text Wrapping icon (a little dog in the middle of a square). Click on it and choose Behind Text.

4. You can move the photo around on your page by simply clicking on it, holding down the mouse and dragging it. If you position your cursor over the little squares at the corners, click and drag, you can resize the photo. Be careful not to use the squares at the top, bottom or sides or else you’ll distort the picture!

5. If you’d like to crop your photo, click on it and choose the crop icon on the Picture toolbar. Bars will appear on the sides and corners of your photo which, if you click and drag, will allow you to shave off the excess.

6. Repeat for as many photos as you’d like to use in your layout. If these are the sizes you want your pictures to be, you can print them now.

Now, it’s time to start designing!1. Experiment with where you want to put the photos, resizing or cropping as desired, until you have a pleasing arrangement.

2. Add in areas for patterned paper. Go to the AutoShapes tab on the Drawing toolbar and select Basic Shapes. Click on the shape you’d like, text wrap just as you did for step 3 of your photos (see the previous section), and click and drag the squares until the dimensions and positions are how you want them.

3. To place the shapes behind your photos, click on each shape and click the little arrow next to Draw on the Drawing toolbar and select Order. I usually choose Send Behind Text.

Get ready to add text.1. To create your title and journaling, click the Insert tab and choose Text Box. Just like you did with your photos and shapes, text wrap the box and manipulate it until it’s the size you want for your title block.

2. Position your cursor over the edge of the box until you see an icon with crossed arrows and right-click. From the menu that appears, choose Add Text (or Edit Text). Now you are able to type in the box.

3. Choose the fonts and font sizes you want. You can highlight certain words or even letters in your title if you’d like to mix fonts or sizes.

4. If you don’t want a line around the journaling box, right-click on the edge as you did in step 2 of this section, except choose Format Text Box from the menu. Select the Colors and Lines tab, then in the Color box choose No Fill and in the Line box choose No Line.

Execute the layout.1. From here, print out your layout design on regular office paper. Click the File tab on the very top left of your screen and choose Print. I usually just print a draft version to save ink. Refer to this printout as you complete your layout.

2. If you haven’t already printed your photos, click on each of them while holding down the Shift key until they are all selected. Right-click and choose Copy. Open a new document. Right-click and select Paste. Move the photos around as needed to stay clear of the margins and use space wisely.

3. Go back to your original document and delete everything except the journaling and/or title—whichever text you want printed on your background sheet of cardstock.

4. Use the paper layout you printed as a template for cutting out your patterned paper shapes and/or cardstock title block.